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Student Leaders Share Their Skills beyond Campus Borders

Upper School student leaders have been gaining recognition and enjoying opportunities to work with outstanding peers from across St. Louis and Missouri in recent months.

In early October, senior Cameron Bania was among the 56 students honored as a 2017 Outstanding Student Leader by St. Louis County, at a daylong workshop and ceremony hosted by Washington University-St. Louis. And over the summer, Principia sponsored three seniors—Jeremy Fox, Caleb Grow, and Kiki Holmes—to attend the weeklong Missouri Boys and Girls State sessions, which involve hundreds of high school leaders from across Missouri in realistic, hands-on civics and government simulations.

At both State events, students are encouraged to run for multiple elected positions, without worrying about winning or losing—because trying is the important thing. At Girls State, Kiki was elected to serve as a city councilwoman and a county judge. At Boys State, Caleb was chosen to serve on the staff of the Senate chamber and Jeremy was elected to the House of Representatives. Kiki says she appreciated “the outgoing mindset and desire to just do everything. Everyone was constantly excited about the entire group, always cheering and having fun.”

Similarly, at the St. Louis County Outstanding Student Leader workshop, Cameron says, “The students that I met were awesome! One thing that stood out to me was that everyone I met was always looking for ways to help.” Cameron’s own achievements are pretty awesome, too. Principia Upper School Principal Christen Alford notes that Cameron was chosen for this honor by Upper School administrators on the basis of her achievements across the board—in academics, student leadership, athletics, and community service. Cameron is on the honor roll, regularly takes AP classes, and overloads her schedule with one or more art classes each semester. She has played varsity basketball and softball all four years, including serving as captain of both teams; traveled to South Africa and the Dominican Republic on service trips; and is currently a House captain.

The House system “provides a lot of leadership opportunities that were not available before and are so valuable,” Cameron says. “It also brings lots of school spirit and pride and helps students from different grades to bond.” (To learn more about the House system, watch this video.)

Jeremy, who has served as captain of the football team, says he learned a lot at Boys State that he can apply as a student—and to life in general. “We had to collaborate the whole week, so it was great to get practice working with people—especially people you aren’t comfortable with or don’t know,” he says.